Chapter 515 - 500: A New Way to Earn Money

Sun Jiaming watched Gu’er, who was laughing so hard she had collapsed onto the little bed and couldn’t get up. She clutched her stomach, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably as her head bobbed up and down.

Sun Jiaming couldn’t help but find it amusing. ’My son is just too adorable,’ he thought. ’He guarded his food all day, and he was still wary of me even in his sleep.’

’Looks like I’ll have to be more careful as he gets older and more perceptive.’

"Have you had enough of a laugh?"

Sun Jiaming got up and walked over to Gu’er’s side.

"Nope... *sob*... Haha."

Gu’er still couldn’t stop laughing. ’In my past life, I never got to experience the joy of having a child,’ she thought. ’Can a child really bring their parents this much happiness?’

"Laugh all you want. In a minute, I’ll give you something to *really* laugh about."

With that, Sun Jiaming swept Gu’er into his arms. It was impossible for her to resist, so she could only wrap her arms around his neck.

"Okay, I surrender! I’ll stop laughing! Mmm, don’t do this."

Gu’er said she would stop, but she couldn’t help letting out a stifled laugh because Sun Jiaming had started tickling her.

"Begging for mercy now? Too late. Watch how I’m going to deal with you."

Sun Jiaming’s hand came to rest on her bottom. He gave it a squeeze, a bit of playful punishment in the gesture. The pressure was harder than usual, sending a novel sensation through Gu’er.

Gu’er’s pleas for mercy turned into moans.

The night was long, and for the couple, it was filled with endless sweetness.

By the time Zheng Changsheng returned from his work, he had news for everyone. He told them that representatives from Country M had come to inspect the quality and style of the clothing and were satisfied. However, they didn’t sign a contract immediately. Instead, they visited a few other companies before ultimately choosing to partner with them. The first order was for five hundred sets of clothes, and the down payment had already been wired. They also mentioned that this was just the initial order and that larger ones would follow.

Zheng Changsheng placed the order form and the contract in front of them.

"This is great! Even though five hundred sets isn’t a huge amount, it means we’ve broken into the market. More orders will follow, and if we build up our brand and reputation, we’ll attract more clients. Now that we’ve taken this first step, the path forward will be much smoother."

Gu’er was thrilled. Initially, she hadn’t even considered this possibility. Their city was too landlocked and remote, with poor transportation that couldn’t compare to the coastal cities. But now, with Zheng Changsheng, a shop, and contacts over there, this business became much more feasible. As long as they kept this channel open, they could eventually build their own clothing brand. The potential for growth was limitless.

"Uncle Zheng, tell us, how much are we making per set?"

Li Zhi was ecstatic as well. Seeing their hard work from this past period finally bear fruit would put anyone in a good mood.

"Their standards are high, so we chose good, comfortable materials. We can’t cut any corners there. Plus, people over there are generally taller, so the clothes require more fabric. Since this is our first time working together, I didn’t aim for a huge profit margin. We’re making this much per set."

After speaking, Zheng Changsheng held up two fingers. Of course, it wasn’t just for this initial order; they would never compromise on quality in the future either. They were all people of integrity and would never try to pass off inferior products as premium ones.

"Two yuan a set? Then ten sets is twenty, a hundred is two hundred, and five hundred is a thousand... We worked for over a month to make a thousand yuan?" Li Zhi’s initial excitement deflated. "And that’s split five ways, so only two hundred per family? That doesn’t even cover travel costs! We basically worked for free. But whatever, it’s fine. It’s just the first order. We’ll make more later."

Gu’er frowned slightly as well. ’If that’s the case, we really aren’t making much money. We’d need massive orders to turn a profit. Are the margins really that slim? Or was our asking price too low?’

"We are making two per set," Zheng Changsheng said unhurriedly, "but those two are US Dollars."

He had been the one to negotiate the price. Gu’er and the others had given him full authority, since it’s bad for business to have multiple people quoting different prices. They had simply entrusted him to handle everything.

"US Dollars? In that case, we’re not making a thousand yuan, but over ten thousand! I knew it! It couldn’t be that little. US Dollars are great, just great!"

Li Zhi’s eyes lit up again. By that calculation, each person would get several thousand yuan. While that wasn’t a huge amount for them, this was a new venture. ’The path ahead will only get wider,’ he thought. He was looking at the future potential.

Gu’er finally let out a sigh of relief. ’Now *that* calculation makes sense. A thousand yuan would have been far too little.’

"Why didn’t you say so from the start? Look how you scared these kids," Lin Shuying chided Zheng Changsheng, who just chuckled in response.

Gu’er and Sun Jiaming, along with Dingzi and Marina, all started laughing. Marina wasn’t concerned about how much money they made; she had plenty of her own. The last time she went to Russia, her father had given her a large sum, insisting that she couldn’t be short of funds while living in a foreign country. She hadn’t wanted to take it, especially since Dingzi always gave her money and her own savings were sitting in the bank. But her father told her to keep it for their future grandson, so Marina was financially very comfortable. She was happy as long as Dingzi and his partners were making progress.

"By the way, Uncle Zheng," Li Zhi said, "Feng Ling wants to study fashion design. Once she’s trained, we won’t need to hire a designer; she can create all our future styles. She wants to study in Guang City, so when she’s there, we’ll have to trouble you to look after her a bit."

He explained that he and Feng Ling had already discussed it, and he had even taken her to meet his parents. The Li Family was very pleased with Feng Ling. After all, their son was finally willing to settle down with a wife. It was a far cry from before, when he would bolt at the mere mention of marriage, which had them worried sick.

Besides, Feng Ling was a neat, pretty, and bright girl—the kind of daughter-in-law one could be proud to introduce. As for her family’s financial situation, the Li Family wasn’t short on money and didn’t need to marry into wealth. All that mattered was that she came from a respectable background and was sensible.

Feng Ling was a woman of few words, but she was perceptive and hardworking. When his parents heard about how she had cared for her grandfather, they found her to be very filial and gave their blessing.

Since their son had agreed to Feng Ling studying for a year, they had no objections. However, before she left, the two families met to set a wedding date. They would get married as soon as she came back.

"Don’t worry, you can leave it all to me," Zheng Changsheng readily agreed. "I happen to have a house near one of the schools. I’ll handle her registration, too. Feng Ling can stay there. It has a kitchen so she can cook and everything. It’s a little small, but it’ll be plenty of space for her. I’m happy to help with something like this."

"Thank you so much, Uncle Zheng. Let me treat you to some drinks tonight."

Li Zhi expressed his gratitude. With Uncle Zheng looking out for her, Feng Ling would have an easier time, which gave him peace of mind.

"No need for drinks. I’m a bit tired from all the travel these past few days. These old bones can’t keep up with you youngsters. I need to get a good rest tonight."

Zheng Changsheng smiled and waved his hand dismissively. He knew from painful experience how much Li Zhi and the others could drink. The last time, they had drunk him under the table, and he had no intention of getting into a drinking contest with them again.

"A drink can help you relax! We’ll just have a little tonight. I promise we won’t let you drink too much, Uncle Zheng. Otherwise, Auntie here would scold me, wouldn’t she?" Li Zhi joked.

"You little rascal, always running your mouth," Lin Shuying shot Li Zhi a look.

"See? See? Auntie’s already scolding me!"

Li Zhi feigned a look of grievance, and everyone burst into laughter.

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